A DOG which had been beaten, burned and left with holes in its head is finally on the mend.

Bruce, a four-year-old brown male bull lurcher –a cross between a sighthound and a bull breed often used for illegal hunting – was rescued in August.

He was reported as a stray and collected by a dog warden, who realised he needed immediate veterinary attention. She rushed him to a nearby clinic, where staff contacted the RSPCA – and the charity has been responsible for his care since.

“I have never seen a dog in this state in my 20-year career at the RSPCA,” said Chief Inspector Rob Melloy.

“He had a swollen, protruding eye and a deep hole in the top of his skull. His face was bloodied and battered, his skull fractured in several places, his jaw broken and his tail had been burned. He was also very skinny.

“We believe he had either been beaten with a screwdriver or a piece of wood with a nail hammered into it, giving him the severe puncture wounds and nasty eye injury which had then become infected. His eye had to be removed.

“Shockingly, it’s thought he’d been like that for three or four days before he was found.”

But Bruce is now on the mend and vets say he seems to be happy.

Mr Melloy said: “It’s nothing short of a miracle. To say we are relieved by the feedback from vets is an understatement.

“We had been really worried, based on what we’ve been told by them, that Bruce was going to have such a poor quality of life they may decide he needed to be put to sleep on welfare grounds.

“He can’t yet open his mouth fully but is otherwise doing everything a healthy dog does, which is amazing given all he’s been through.

“Some other specialists are looking over the scans and further surgery may be an option down the line, and if this is in his interest this will happen. We’ll hear back from them in due course.

“Bruce remains with a foster carer at the moment and we are not seeking a new home for him.”

A national appeal for information to find the people responsible for ill-treating Bruce resulted in huge media coverage, and RSPCA officers say they have followed up on all of the information that came in as a result, but it has not led to any prosecutions.

“It’s very disappointing that we haven’t found who did this, and while we’re thrilled that Bruce is now able to move into the next chapter in his life, this case is not closed,” said Mr Melloy.

l Anyone with any information they think might help can call the RSPCA appeal line on 0300-123-8018. Or to help the RSPCA continue to help animals like Bruce, visit www.rspca.org.uk/give